Career Center

Summary

This position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP) - a student loan payment reimbursement program. You must meet specific individual eligibility requirements in accordance with VHA policy and submit your EDRP application within four months of appointment. Program Approval - award amount (up to $200 -000) and eligibility period (one to five years) are determined by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services program office after complete review of the EDRP application.

Qualifications

Basic Requirements:

• (a) United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy
• (b) English Language Proficiency: Per VA Handbook 5005 - Part II - Chapter 3 - Section A - Paragraph 3j: No person will be appointed under authority of 38 U.S.C. - chapter 73 or 74 - to serve in a direct patient-care capacity in VHA who is not proficient in written and spoken English
• (c) Education Requirement - You must have a doctoral degree in psychology from a graduate program in psychology accredited by the American Psychological Association (APA) - the Psychological Clinical Science Accreditation System (PCSAS) - or the Canadian Psychological Association (CPA) at the time the program was completed
• The specialty area of the degree must be consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed
• OR - have a doctoral degree in any area of psychology and - in addition - successfully completed a re-specialization program meeting both of the following conditions: a) the re-specialization program must be completed in an APA or a CPA accredited doctoral program
• and b) the specialty in which you were retrained is consistent with the assignment you are applying for
• OR - have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally-accredited institution - with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature
• (d) Internship Requirement - You must have successfully completed a professional psychology internship training program that was accredited by APA or CPA at the time the program was completed and that is consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed
• OR - New VHA psychology internship programs that are in the process of applying for APA accreditation are acceptable in fulfillment of the internship requirement - provided that such programs were sanctioned by the VHA Central Office Program Director for Psychology and the VHA Office of Academic Affiliations at the time that the individual was an intern
• OR - VHA facilities that offered full-time - one-year pre-doctoral internships prior to PL 96-151 (pre-1979) are considered to be acceptable in fulfillment of the internship requirement
• OR - Applicants who completed an internship that was not accredited by APA or CPA at the time the program was completed may be considered eligible for hire only if they are currently board certified by the American Board of Professional Psychology in a specialty area that is consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed
• (NOTE: Once board certified - the employee is required to maintain board certification
• OR - Applicants who have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally-accredited institution with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature may fulfill this internship requirement by having the equivalent of a one-year supervised internship experience in a site specifically acceptable to the candidate's doctoral program
• If the internship experience is not noted on the applicant's official transcript - the applicant must provide a statement from the doctoral program verifying that the equivalent of a one-year supervised internship experience was completed in a site acceptable to the doctoral program
• (e) Licensure: Candidates must hold a full - current - and unrestricted license to practice psychology at the doctoral level in a State - Territory or Commonwealth of the United States - or the District of Columbia
• GRADE DETERMINATIONS: GS-13 Staff Psychologist (Full Performance Level): At least 2 years of experience as a professional psychologist - with at least one year equivalent to the GS-12 level
• In addition to the experience above - the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs: Knowledge of - and ability to apply - professional psychological treatments to the full range of patient populations
• Ability to provide professional advice and consultation in areas related to professional psychology and behavioral health
• Knowledge of clinical research literature
• Preferred Experience: Pain Psychology Experience References: For more information on this qualification standard - please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/
• Physical Requirements: You will be asked to participate in a pre-employment examination or evaluation as part of the pre-employment process for this position
• Questions about physical demands or environmental factors may be addressed at the time of evaluation or examination.

Duties

• Relocation/Recruitment incentive may be authorized for highly qualified candidates VA Careers - Psychologist: https://youtube.com/embed/77qHlLw9Xck Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional Incumbent is a psychologist assigned to the St
• Cloud VA Health Care System Primary and Specialty Medicine ICC Pain Clinic/Team
• The psychology program is designed to assist in patient care through psychodiagnostic testing and interviewing - individual and group psychotherapy - training - research - consultation - and other services typically provided by a psychologist
• 1
• Assessment and Evaluation
• Administers - scores - and interprets psychological assessment techniques
• Obtains and evaluates personal - educational - and vocational histories - reviews records of other services for pertinent data - and prepares evaluative reports
• Incumbent interviews and evaluates patients in order to analyze historical and dynamic factors pertaining to their illness with special concern for factors relating to diagnostic - prognostic - and treatment variables
• Works with patients who present particularly difficult diagnostic - prognostic - or treatment problems
• When assessing or providing patient care - the employee considers the age of the patient as it relates to the ability to understand directions - to provide objective self-assessment - or to respond to any other medical milieu appropriate to the overall treatment plan
• This requires the knowledge of psychological characteristics of all age groups
• 2
• Individual Psychotherapy
• May plan - conduct - record - evaluate - and report on individual psychotherapy sessions
• Individual psychotherapy refers to the professional process whereby the psychologist assists the patient in working through problems and formulating plans and ideas as distinct from those activities principally concerned with evaluating his potential and past history of training and experience
• Specifically - incumbent assists patients by evaluating their assets and liabilities and in their attempts to understand themselves - to achieve better interpersonal relationships - and to adapt themselves more effectively to their environments
• 3
• Group Psychotherapy
• May plan - conduct - record - evaluate and report on group psychotherapy sessions - as well as facilitate patient education meetings and therapy programs in addition to the professional processes outlined above in paragraph 2
• May conduct family therapy sessions
• 4
• Consultation
• May consult with other psychologists - consultants - professional staff - medical center management - or individuals and organizations in the community - usually relating to the status of or plans for patients - problems or procedures related to the operations of the Mental Health Partners Outpatient Clinic and occasionally to problems referred by other services
• May serve persons other then patients - such as screening or counseling of personnel when they are referred
• 5
• Research
• May review professional literature for research planning - hypothesis development - instrumentation - data - analysis - and scientific reports
• May conduct research that is local - fact-finding - or basic and developmental
• May also conduct research that involves direct or indirect service to patients or to the medical center
• 6
• Training
• May plan and personally participate in station-wide training programs and in the training of psychologist and other personnel
• May serve on the Psychology Training Committee
• Receives training from staff psychologists and other professional personnel including supervision - in-service training - and station workshops and seminars
• Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 8am-4:30pm Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): May be authorized for highly qualified applicants
• Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized EDRP Authorized: Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive
• Contact VHA.ELRSProgramSupport@va.gov - the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance
• Learn more Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases Paid Time Off: 37-50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13-26 days of annual leave - 13 days of sick leave - 11 paid Federal holidays per year) Parental Leave: After 12 months of employment - up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth - adoption - or foster care placement of a child
• Child Care Subsidy: After 60 days of employment - full time employees with a total family income below $144 -000 may be eligible for a childcare subsidy up to 25% of total eligible childcare costs for eligible children up to the monthly maximum of $416.66
• Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement) Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position
• Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized